For Jasond Tseng Chow Chih, heritage advocate and calligrapher, Malacca is home to one of the strongest Chinese cultural heritage roots outside China. The Chinese-Malaysian, a director of the Centre for Malaysian Chinese Studies in Kuala Lumpur, said that like most ethnic Chinese families in Malacca, his family has a genealogy book that descendants can use to trace who their first Chinese ancestors to set foot in Malaysia were and when they did so.
"We treasure our heritage and ancestral ties because we live far from China," Tseng said. Members of the community hold on to their familial ties by studying in Chinese language schools and celebrating many Chinese festivals including Chinese New Year, Chap Goh Mei also known as Lantern Festival, and Mid-Autumn Festival.
One such person is Sherlyn Tan, a homemaker and mother of three. Tan, who lives in Kuala Lumpur, said she and her family returns to Malacca regularly to visit her extended family.
"I grew up in Malacca, and it is a part of me no matter what. A lot of my family also live there. Every Chinese New Year my children and I visit lots of relatives."
She wants her children to see her hometown and to "help my children to understand our culture and ways better", she said.
The numerous places in Malacca that testify to its strong ties to China include Chinese language schools, heritage museums, the public burial ground at Bukit Cina also known as China Hill, and Cheng Hoon Teng Temple, which is more than 300 years old.
Perhaps the most tangible aspect of Chinese heritage in Malacca is the presence of numerous shophouses. To this day some ethnic Chinese families in Malacca continue to live in shophouses, with both the property and family traditions passed through several generations. One such person is Benjamin Cheh Ming Hann, 41, a graphic designer who grew up in a century-old shophouse just across the Malacca River.
"I grew up in a friendly neighbourhood, in a pre-war house over 100 years old. The area was bustling with lorries carrying goods, people bargaining prices, and friendly neighbours greeting each other."
The shophouses are also a reminder of how Malacca's history is inextricably linked to Admiral Zheng He, the 15th-century Chinese explorer and diplomat who helped turn a once sleepy fishing village into one of the world's major trading hubs.
Zheng embarked on seven epic voyages from 1405 to 1433 across the Asian and African continents and passed through the Strait of Malacca. He visited Malacca five times, and it was through these journeys that trade was spurred between China and the then Malacca Sultanate.
Chinese merchants, who started sailing to Malacca in the early 15th century, would eventually settle in Malacca, living in shophouses, marrying local women and raising their families. It was the intermarriage of Chinese men and native women that gave birth to the Peranakan ethnic group.
"When Zheng He was here it was a pretty stable time, at least in this part of the world," said Cedric Tan Chai Cheng, a consultant for Malaysia's Department of National Heritage.
Cedric Tan, a sixth-generation Peranakan, was raised in a century-old shophouse, in which he still lives.
Zheng's visits to Malacca opened many doors for Malacca because it promoted a maritime route that encouraged merchants from all over the world to trade with Malacca, he said.
"Zheng is the person who created this opportunity, not only in Malacca, but for all the ports that he visited," he said.
Tseng said that unlike more urbanised cities such as Penang and Singapore where highrise buildings dwarf shophouses in both height and number, Malacca has more shophouses.
They also served as headquarters for clan association, a lifeblood for early Chinese migrants who came alone and needed the support of a close-knit community, he said.
Today some of the shophouses have been converted into restaurants, museums or retail outlets that line Jonker Walk. One of the shophouses is home to a museum that showcases artefacts, photos and dioramas that document Zheng's travels.